Bottle-dispensing and refrigerating apparatus



1 2 March 8 9 7 D. v. WRIGHT BOTTLE DISPENSING AND REFRIGERATING APPARA'LUS Filed Jan. 28, 1924 lfgl March 8, 1927., D. V. WRIGHT ,6 9 999BOTTLE DISPENSING AND REFRIGERATING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 28, 1924 5Sheets-Sheet 2 l r Laax/7. hall atfozuuf@ l619,999 March 8 1927 D V,WRIGHT BOTTLE DISPENSING AND REFRIGERATING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 28, 19245 SheetS-Sheetl I5 lll Patented Mar. 8, 1927.

DALLAS V. WRIGHT. OF FORT DODGE, IOWA.

BOTTLE-DISPENSING AND RERIGERATING ADPARATUS.

Application led January 28, 1924. Seriall No. 689,097.

This invention relates to an improved device for the facile handling ofbottled goods.

A further object of this invention is the provision of a noveldispensing apparatus and refrigerator embodying a compact arrangement ofdetails by means of which bottled products, such as soft drinks may beconveniently handled.

A further object of this invention is the provision of a combineddispensing and refrigerating apparatus including novel means forreceiving bottles of various sizes, whereby they may be moved toward adispensing point. 4

A further object of this invention is the provision of novel bottlesupporting and dispensing' means arranged in a novel relation within arefrigerating construction.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be apparent duringthe course of the following detailed description.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, andwherein similar reference characters designate corresponding partsthroughout the several views,

Figure 1 is a fragmentary front elevation of the improved bottledispensing and refrigerating apparatus. showing novel features ofconstruction thereof.

Fig. 2 is a cross sectional view' taken substantially on the line 2 2 ofFigure 1, showing novel interior arrangement of the apparatus.

Fig. 3 is a. fragmentary rear elevation of the improved dispensing andrefrigerating apparatus.

Fig'. 4 is a fragmentary view, partly'in cross section, showing a noveltype of chute construction` especially showing the upper constructionthereof.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary cross sectional view taken through a portion ofthe chute construction of the apparatus, showing the means by which thesame may be adjusted for receiving bottles of various sizes in anefficient and a compact arrangement.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary perspective view of a novel construction of thebottle dispensing chutes embodied in this invention.

ln the drawings, wherein for the purpose of illustration isshown onlythe preferred embodiment of this invention, the letter A ma y generallydesignate the improved bottle dispensing and refrigerating apparatus,which may consist of a cabinet B; means C in the cabinet for supportingcooling mediums such as ice, cold water, and the like; and chute means Dfor support-ing and regulating movement of bottles.

The cabinet B is of novel construction, includinga Hat bottom wall 10;right and left side walls 11 and 12 respectively; a top wall 1 3; and arear Wall 14. The top wall 13 is shorter than the bottom Wall 10, due tothe novel front wall construction of the cabinet. The side walls 11 and12 are each preferably provided with upper doors 17 hingedly connectedas at 18 therein; the openings leading through these side walls beingfor the purpose of removing and placing ice, as will be subsequentlymentioned.

The rear wall 14, upwardly thereon is preferably provided with a pair ofdoors 20 and 21, hingedly connected adjacent opposite sides of thecabinet; the doors 20 and 21 having a latch mechanism 23 sup-portedthereby as means of locking themlin a closed position. These doors 20and 21 are adapted to close a relatively wide opening in the rear wallof the cabinet, and through which rear opening the refill portions ofthe chute construction D may extend when the supply of bottled goods isbeing replenished.

The front Wall structure of the cabinet B consists of a forward wallportion 25, which is placed upwardly at right angles to the bottom, wall10, at the forward margin thereof. A short Wall po-rtion 26 is alsosupported byJ the side Walls 11 and 12, upwardly of the Wall portion 25,and to the rear thereof; -the wall portions and 26, of course, beingvertically disposed. The odset relation of these wall portions 25 and 26enables the provision of a closure or lid 27 to be hingedly connected,as at 28 to the lower margin of the intermediate wall portion 26; thisclosure 27 being horizontally disposed when in shut relation to close alower opening into the compartment of the cabinet, and through whichopening a person is enabled to remove the bottles from the cabinet, aswill be subsequently disclosed. The front wall construction alsoincludes a wall portion 29 located in a. vertical plane to the rear ofthe intermediate wall portion 26, and at its upper end being fixedalong/the front margin of the top wall 13. The offset relation of theintermediate wall portion 26 with the upper portion 29 permits a closure30 to be hingedly connected, as at 31, adjacent the lower edge of thefront wall portion 29; the

closure 30 when in shut position being horizontall disposed, and closinganopening in the ront wall construction through which an operator mayreach to remove cracked ice or the like, as will be subsequentlydescribed. The closure members 27 and 30 at theirfree ends rest upon thewall portions 25 and 26 o1 the front wall construction, and it isreferred tl1a't"'the wall portion 29 ofsaid ront wall construction havespaced transparent panes 33 therein so that'the contents of the upperportion of the cabinet will be visible therethrough. It is preferred-tosup port the cabinet B upon legs 35 orthe like, secured at the cornersthereof in any ap` proved manner. The bottom, top, side and rear walls,as well as the doors hingedly connected thereto, and also the front wallportion 25 are preferably of'an insulated character, having aninsulating material 38 ern bedded between outer and inner layersthereof, in accordance with any approved refrigerator insulatingconstruction, and as is illustrated in the various views of the draw- 1ns.

`eferring to the interior construction of the cabinet, and moreparticularly the ar` rangement C therein for supporting cooling mediums,it is preferred to provide a metal lining 40 within the lower portion ofthe compartment of the cabinet B; this lining extending over the insidesurface of the bottom wall 10, and upwardly for a distance along theinside surface of the'side walls and rear wall, and upwardly along theinside surface of the front wall portion 25, sub stantially as isillustrated in the drawings. A cold water receiving pan or receptacle 41rests Within the cabinet B, inside of the lining 40; this pan 41preferably consisting of a front wall 42 which abut-s the inside liningat the front wall portion 25; side walls 42a which may abut against thelining at the side walls of the cabinet; and a bottom wall 44 whichextends at its forward .portion in abutting engagement with the lining40, and at its rear end is arcuated upwardly, as at 45, to conform tothe contour -of the chute construction D as will be subsequentlydescribed. This water pan or receptacle 41 is open at the top thereof,and the chute construction D enters the compartment of this pan, so thatthe bottles as they are dispensed will enter the cold water medium inthis pan, and pass to a point below the opening of the lcapinpt whichisv normally closed by the Upwardly ofthe coldwater pan 41, and

against the inside surfaces of the cabinet` side walls 11 and 12. Thereceptacle 47 is within the compartment of the cabinet Bv upon theinside surfaces of the side walls 1l and 12. This pan is entirely openat the top thereof, and is adapted to receive cracked ice, which may beremoved in facile manner therefrom through the opening which iscontrolled by the closure 30, as can be readily understood from Figure 2of the drawings.

A rack 55, consisting of a plurality of spaced slats in a horizontalplane, is preferably provided upwardly of the cracked ice pan 47,immediately to the rear of the front wall portion 29, which is adaptedto support a cake or cakes of ice 56; this ice being inserted into the'cabinet through the side doors 17 of the cabinet, so that cold waterresulting from melting of the cake of ice may drip into the cracked icepan or into the cold water pan; as the rearend portions of both of thesepans extend partially beneath the rack 55. It is also preferred that alower rack 57 beprovided, Whichconsists of a plurality of spaced slatsarranged in a horizontal plane, arranged to the rear of the cold waterpan 41, immediately adjacent the rear wall 14; this rack 57 beingadapted for supporting' a cake of ice 58, which is inserted through therear wall opening of the cabinet B. Below the rack 57 a duct 60 may beprovided in the bottom wall for drip of water from the compartment toany suitable overliow pan below the cabinet.

The chute construction D of this invention is novel, and is compactlyarranged Within the compartment of the cabinet B so that the bottledproducts dispensibly supported thereby receive a maximum cooling actionfrom the cooling mediums within the compartment.

` A bed plate 70 is supported in a stable above the top of thewater pan41, and at.

which point a supporting rail 71 is horizontally affixed across thecompartment of the cabinet B. This bed plate is provided for the purposeof securing the various chutes of the construction D in a sta-ble, andadjustable relation.

The chute construction D embodies a plurality of spaced chutes 75 adjustably secured upon the bed plate structure 70. Each of these chutes 75consists of a pair of side walls 77 and 7S of analogous construction,which along their lower edges' are provided with flanges 79 and S0respectively arranged at right angles thereto. These flanges 79 and S0.which may appropriately be. termed attaching flanges are each providedwith a plurality of openings S1 arranged transversely theretln-ough. andat various distances along the length of these flanges these transverseseries of openings S1 may be provided. They are provided as a means forreceiving an attachiner bolt 82 therethrough, which may be securednfothe bed plate for the purpose of holding the side walls 77 and 78 in aproperly spaced relation according to the width of the bottle which thechute is to receive. The transverse series of openings S1 may, ofcourse. be selectively placed in alignment so that it is possible toarrange the walls 77 and 78 at various spaced distances to provide achute of a proper width to receive the right size bottle. Along theupper marginal portion of the side walls "77 and 78 inwardly arcuatcdside flanges 83 and 8l may be respectively supported by the walls 77 and7S. in a detachable and adjustable manner by Cotter pin or analogouselements S5. It is preferred that these flanges L83 andl 8-1 be eachprovided with transverse series of openings 87 thereacross, throughwhich the cotter pins may bel selectively placed so that the upperarcuated portions of the flanges 83 and 84. may be properly7 elevated orlowered according to the height of the bottle; the facing marginal edgesS9 of the guide flanges 83 and 81 being adapted to receive the neckportion of the bottle in sliding engagement substantially as isillustrated in Figure 5 of the drawings. 'It is to be particularly notedthat the chut-e constructions 75 are placed in a spaced relation, sothat the space therebetween may also be utilized as a chute passage fordispensibly receiving bottles therealong. lVithin. and over this chutepassage between the structure 75. guide flanges S9 and 90 may besupported by the cotter pin construction 85 of adjacent chuteconstruction 7 5: these guide flanges 89 and 90 being of analogousstructure with respect to the guide flanges 83 and 84C, and havingtransverse series of openings 92 therein for selectively receiving thecotter pins 85 therethrough as a means by which the guide flanges 89 and90 may be properly elevated or lowered to receive the bottles to bedispensed. as above mentioned. Thus, it is to be noted that each chutestructure 7 5 provides a bottle receiving guide way or compartmentt-herealong and the space between the facing walls of adjacentstructures 75 is also utilized as a bottle guide way or commitment, asis illustrated in the drawings.

The description thus far of the chute construction D take intoconsideration only that portion of the chute structure which is mountedin a stationary manner within the cabinet compartment, and the chutestructure 7 5 as well as the guide flanges 83, 84, 89. and 90 supportedthereby arcuate upwardly at their rear ends and terminate at the-irupper edges on aI common horizontal plane; the chute structure abovethis being hingedly or inovably connected and providing an inclined orsubstantially vertically disposed refill portion. The guide flanges 83,84, 89 and 90. at their forward edges terminate below the intermediatewall ortion 26 of the cabinet `B, so that the bott es as they are fedalong the chute ways may ride from beneath the arcuate chute flanges toa point beneath the cover 27, so that upon opening of the closure orcover 27 a person may readily remove a desired bottle withoutinterference from the guide flanges 83, 84, 89 or 90.

Each chute way as provided by the stationary portions 75 has a hingedchute section 95 pivot-ally supported at its lower end upon a pivot bar96 which is arranged transversely of the cabinet, immediately over thesupporting rail 71; the ends of' this bar 96 being connected in thesides of the cabinet B; one end of the bar 96 preferably having a head97 thereon, and the other end being screw threaded for receiving a nut98. Each of the hinged sections 95 consists of side Walls 100 and 101which are arranged in parallel vertical planes, and each of which has abottom flange 102; which are arranged at right angles to the side wallsand 101; the bottom flanges of said walls overlying each other, andbeing provided with transverse series of apertures 103 therethroughwhich are adapted to be selectively placed in alignnient for receivingbolts 104 by means of which the walls 100 and 101 may be connected in adesired spaced relation, according to the principle of this inventionwhereby bottles of various diameters or Widths may be slidably receivedby the hinged and stationary portions of the chute structures. Each ofthe chute Walls 100 and 101 respectively support guide flanges 106 and107 thereon. which extend outwardly from the forward marginal edgesthereof, being adjustably secured thereto. These flanges actuateinwardly toward each other outwardly of the forward marginal edges ofthe walls to which they are attached, and each of these side Walls orflanges 106 and 107 is provided at spaced points therealong withtransverse series of openings 108 adapted to be placed in selectivealignment with an opening in its Wall 100 or 101, and to be attached tosaid wall by means of a cotter pin 110 or analogous securing element.

Thus, the guide flanges 106 and 107 may be placed at a desired distanceoutwardly or inwardly with respect to the bottom wall of the hingedsection 95, as provided by the flanges 102, so that bottles of variousheights may be compactly arranged and efiic'iently located for guidingmovement within the hinged sections 95.

Referring to the operation of this invention, the bottles are placed inthe hinged chute sections 95 from the rear ends thereof; the hingedchutes when being refilled with bottles being supported in horizontalrelation with their rear ends extending through the opening in the rearwall 14 of the cabinet B, substantially as is illustrated in dottedlines in Figure 2 of the drawings. The

bottles may thus be conveniently inserted into the hinged sections 95,and the hinged sections may then be swung upwardly into their diagonallyinclined positions so that the bottles may pass by gravity down into theguide ways of the stationary portions of the chutes, until the bottlesare arranged substantially as is illustrated in Figure 2 of thedrawings. The upper end of each of the hinged sections 95 is providedwith a latch 115 pivoted thereon, which at its upper end may abutagainst a depending portion 116 of the rear wall 14 of the cabinet B, asthe means of supporting the hinged sections in their inclined relation,notwithstanding the opening of the cabinet doors 20 and 21. lVhen it. isdesired to lower any of the sections 95 it is merely necessary to turnthe latch 115 until it is out of obstructing relation with respect tothe wall flange 116. The operator by removing a bottle through theopening controlled by the lid 27 is assured that the bottles will bemoved forward into the space left by the extracted bottle, incident toweight of the bottles superposed in the guide ways of the chutes. Thebottles are located in the chutes so that they receive the maximumcooling benefit from the cakes of ice supported by the ledges or shelves55 and 57 and the contents of the bottles are cooled incident to passingthrough the water in the container 41.

Various changes in the shape, size, and arrangement of parts may be madeto the form of the invention herein shown and described, withoutdeparting` from the spirit of this invention or the scope of the claims.

I claim:

1. In a dispensing device of the class described the combination of acabinet having an opening therein, and a closurev for said opening, achute construction in said cabinet including a lower fixed portion whichadjacent the opening of the cabinet is arcuated upwardly, and a hingedupper portion connected adjacent the arcuated end of the fixed chuteportion and adapted to be hingedly moved for horizontal positioning thruthe opening of the cabinet when the closure is opened from the cabinetfor the purpose of refilling the chute, and means for supporting thehinged chute portion at an inclined position in the cabinet in aligningrelation with the arcuated end of the fixed chute portion for dispensingbottles from the hinged chute portion into the fixed chute portion.

2. In a dispensing device of the class described the combination of acabinet, a fixed dispensing guide chute section in the cabinet, a refilldispensing guide chute section hinged adjacent the fixed chute section,and bottle retaining flanges adjustably carried by the fixed and hingedchute sections adapted to be adjusted on said sections to controlmovement of bottles of various sizes.

3. In a dispensing device of the class described the combination of acabinet, and chute means supported in the,cabinet for gravity feed ofbottles thereon comprising a fixed chute section having relativelyadjustable side walls and relatively adjustable guide flanges mountedoutwardly on said side walls, and a hinged chute section adapted toalign with the fixed chute section comprising relatively adjustable sidewalls and relatively adjustable guide flanges supported by said sidewalls. I

4. A bottle dispensing apparatus comprising a cabinet having adispensing opening therein, and a chute construction for dispensiblyreceiving bottles therein, said chute construction consisting of astationary bed plate, a fixed chute section adjustably connected to saidbed plate to receive bottles of various sizes therein, and a hingedchute section connected above and in aligning relation with said fixedchute section for supporting bottles in feeding relation with respect tosaid fixed chute construction so that bottles will be fed along saidchute sections toward the dispensing opening of said cabinet.

5. A bottle dispensing chute comprising a bottom wall, side wallsconnected with the bottom wall in spaced upwardly extending relationtherefrom to provide a guideway therebetween for receiving articles tobe dispensed, and bottle retaining extensions supported at the upperends of said side walls adjustable therealong towards and away from thebottom wall, said extensions having inwardly projecting portions overthe guideway between said side walls in facing relation with the bottomwall for adjustment towards and away therefrom upon movement of saidretaining extensions, said projecting portions of the retainingextensions at their facing edges being spaced to receiving portions ofthe articles to be dispensed therebetween. v

6. In a dispensing device of the class described the combination of astationary dispensing guide chute section having an article dispensingguideway therealong, said stationary guide chute sectionbeing-positioned for gravity feed of the articles there' along, and asecond chute section hingedlyT connected adjacent the upper end of thesta tionary chute section having a guideway therealong, means to supportthe hinged chute Vsection with, its guideway in unobstructed aligningrelation with the guideway of the stationary chute section, saidguideways of both the hinged section and stationary section being ofsubstantially the same transverse cross section to `slidably receivearticles of a definite conformation therein, and means for supportingthe hinged section with its guideway in a refill position out ofaligning relation with the guideway of the stationary chute section.

DALLAS v, WRIGHT.

